Wonderland
by Furinjuru
Summary: The Wonderland of today might be a happy place, but what was it like before? As tensions reached its peak, nine girls will find themselves in the middle of change. Wonderland AU. (ChikaDia, YouRiko, KanaRuby)
1. Kurosawa Dia

Even before she was born, Kurosawa Dia was destined for greatness.

A few months into the queen's pregnancy, a small, star-shaped mark appeared on her collarbone. The mark that has imprinted itself in the minds of the denizens of Wonderland, a symbol of future royalty. A sign that, one day, she will rule as queen.

Her birth was similarly eventful. She, of course, is unable to remember anything from that time, only gaining knowledge from what she heard from other people. As her mother gave birth, dozens of citizens waited outside of the hospital, with many times more watching from home. After all, the birth of royalty is serious business.

When her first cries rang through the air, people rejoiced; there were no complications. But they weren't done quite yet. She would then be bathed in ritual water, and the used water would be boiled over a fire. Smoke billowed from the pot, and in the air, it formed a diamond long enough for people to see before vanishing completely. The diamond-the official sigil of the Rabbit Kingdom-is a sign that she will become a princess, and after that, a queen of the Rabbit Kingdom, just like her mother.

She enjoyed the first few years of her life, she really did. She came from a family of royalty, so she lived in luxury. People knew who she was, and had high expectations for her that she wished to surpass. She was enrolled in the best school there is and had many friends, all of whom admired her. She was groomed to become queen from a very young age, practicing proper manners and how to speak to other people.

She's reminded of her status every time she looks in a mirror. On her chest, right above her heart, is a diamond-shaped mark, just like the one her parents had.

As she grew older, she witnessed the birth of another future royalty for the Rabbit Kingdom, named Watanabe You. Unlike her, she came from a family of merchants, and not even one of the more well-off ones. People begin to speak in hushed whispers as they try to make sense of two future royalties in such a short time. She didn't give the rumors much thought, especially the idea that this Watanabe girl would attempt to usurp her; she'd like to see her try.

People went into even more of a frenzy when her mother became pregnant again, and the mark appeared once again. People wondered if the kingdom would be split up, or whether or not there would be multiple queens ruling at the same time. As they'd soon find out, all of these guesses were unnecessary.

She was one of the people standing outside of the hospital for her sister's birth, waiting with bated breath. When she heard her cries piercing through the air, she breathes a sigh of relief. Once again, the birth was without complication.

Things went south quickly, however, when the ritualistic bathing took place. The smoke begins rising to the air and forming a distinct shape. But unlike what she or anyone else predicted, it did not form a diamond. A heavy silence settles on the crowd as the smoke forms a pair of wings, instead. Dia can only stare in abject horror as the realization hits her.

Unlike her or her parents, her sister was not destined to lead the Rabbit Kingdom. In a cruel twist of fate, her sister was a future Fairy Royalty.


	2. Kurosawa Ruby

"Fucking traitor!"

Ruby stares down, attempting to ignore the hurtful words being hurled her way. She tells herself that she's gotten used to it. She's unable to leave the castle without a person shouting or making a passive-aggressive remark at her.

The first few years of her life were not easy. Accusations of infidelity were thrown at her mother, but a paternal test would prove those accusations to be false; the Rabbit King is her father. And yet, she's the outcast of her family.

 _Fairy Royalty._ If she had been born in the Fairy Kingdom, it would be a word of praise, but here people call her that as if it was a slur. The way they see it, she had been 'destined' to leave the kingdom she was born in and lead an opposing one. In school, she struggled to find anyone willing to befriend her, and even teachers seem cautious of her.

It all became too much. Her parents were forced to move to a smaller house in the neutral territory just to reduce the amount of name-calling she's subjected to. But even here, she can feel people's stares drilling into the back of her head, can see the way they try to avoid her. And when they think she's not listening, she can hear one of those insults being muttered underneath their breaths.

At least she has friends now. She's met two other future Fairy Royalties here. A girl around her age named Kunikida Hanamaru, and an older girl named Matsuura Kanan. The latter is a friend of both her and her sister who seems insistent on protecting Ruby after she knows what she went through. She's nice, Ruby thinks to herself.

Other than them, she's met Ohara Mari, a future Fox Royalty. It seems like an odd coincidence that so many future royalties would live here at the same time, but she's not brave enough to ask them about their reasons for living here.

After a particularly bad day at school, she returns home and locks herself in her room, to the concern of her parents and Dia. She doesn't feel hungry, but takes the trays of food placed in front of her door to alleviate her family's concerns. The food tastes bland, but she eats everything before placing the empty trays outside of her room again.

As she prepares to go to sleep, she looks at herself in the mirror. She stares at the heart-shaped mark on her chest, unlike the ones of anyone else in her family. She stares at it until her vision blurs with tears. Until she's mentally exhausted and she lays down on her bed, crying herself to sleep.

She hates the mark.

She wishes she had never been born with it.

She wishes it would disappear when she wakes up and she'd just be a normal person.

She wishes that she can be happy, one day.


	3. Takami Chika

Takami Chika was destined to be normal.

It's a well-known fact that whenever someone is pregnant with a child that's destined to be a ruler, the mother will get a small mark to show it. And when the child itself is born, they too will have a mark somewhere on their body.

Chika wasn't like that. Her mother went through a normal pregnancy, and there's no kind of mark on her body. She, just like the vast majority of people in Wonderland, simply wasn't destined to be a ruler. Most people just didn't care and found joy in their normal lives.

To her, it hurt a lot more.

Maybe it's because of her childhood friend, Watanabe You, being one of the special kids. As soon as they had gotten comfortable with each other, You showed her the mark located on her shoulder-blades; a small, blue anchor. She was only a few years old at the time and simply told You that she'll be her friend no matter what, prompting the ashen-haired girl to give her a big hug.

But as time went on, the fact that You is future royalty came up more often. Their classmates knew who she was, and her popularity skyrocketed. People recognized Chika as the girl who's always clinging to You, something that bothers You a lot more than it bothers her. She managed to calm down You whenever she's ready to beat up someone, her reason being that it would ruin her reputation.

As this went on, Chika's normalness also became painfully obvious. Her family aren't particularly rich, but they aren't poor, either; they're mikan farmers, a role that's replaceable, but important nonetheless. She'd help her parents with their harvest, selling them in big crates to other merchants in the area, including the Watanabes. After a hard day's work, she'd be eager to play with You, who had remained a constant in her life up until that point.

It was only a few years later when everything changed. She was around 15 at the time. It was the eve of You's birthday, and the girl had invited her to a playground they frequent together. They were both sitting on the swings, stargazing when You broke the news to her.

"I'll be moving to the capital with my family," she said with a forlorn expression. "I have to start my training to become a princess."

Chika felt a lump forming in her throat. "When do you have to leave?"

"Tomorrow," You replied. "They let me stay here until I'm 16 years old, so I have to go to the castle now." Chika was now staring at her feet, and You tried to comfort her. "I'll still come back, though! Whenever I got free time, I'll come back and play with you, just like the good ol' days!"

"Yeah..." Chika mumbled. It sounds unlikely. You would be too busy with the training, and she'd meet a lot of other girls. Why would she want to play with her? "Just don't forget about me, alright You-chan?" She asked with a smile, hoping to ease her friend's worries. That seemed to do the trick, as You returned the smile and saluted.

"Aye aye, Chika!"

The next morning, You was no longer at her house. They didn't sell it, as they wanted to keep the house will all of its memories intact, but it's no longer occupied. That morning was the first time in years Chika felt so alone.

That night, she returned to the playground, sitting down on the swing and watching the stars. You's absence was jarring, but she'll have to get used to it.

She watched as the stars twinkle in the night sky, shining brightly. She reached out, her hand closing in on a big one as she pretended to catch it.

Chika doesn't like destiny, with all of its implications. It meant that Chika wasn't destined to be amazing. She'll continue her parent's business, marry a guy, have kids, and the cycle will repeat itself. A never-ending cycle of mikan farms and normal people.

 _It must be nice_ , she thinks. _To be special._

Some people might get worried by the things she thinks of sometimes, but it sounds quite true in her mind.

The idea that no matter what she does, Takami Chika will die as she lived. A normal person.


	4. Home

Ruby was destined to be miserable.

She had been born with the cursed mark, the cursed 'destiny' that took everything away from her. Her kingdom, the possibility of her making friends, but at least she was left with her family.

But it was only a matter of time until that was taken away from her, too. She knows that future royalty must go through special training as soon as they come of age, so she had mentally counted down how many years it would be until she has to move to the Fairy Kingdom's castle. What she hadn't counted, however, was when the _other_ future Rabbit Royalty, Watanabe You, would come of age.

When that time came, as traditions dictated, the current reigning king, queen, and princess would contribute to the training. And the training would be held at the Rabbit Castle, far away from the neutral territory she lived in. Her family would leave her.

It was a realization that came too late. She had only been aware of it a month before they were to return to their kingdom. In that one month, her family attempted to entertain her. Spending whatever spare time they have with her, buying her favorite food, playing games with her. And Ruby wanted to enjoy them, she really did. She never could, though.

Eventually, the day arrived. With tears in their eyes, her mother and father embraced her in a tight hug. As soon as they broke off the hug, Dia moved towards her and hugged her even tighter. Unlike their parents, tears flowed from her eyes freely.

Dia had grown so much. The pair of long ears on her head, that had grown as soon as she had come of age, is proof of that. But in that brief moment, the normally calm and collected girl broke down into tears in the arms of her sister.

"Ruby, I want to see you again," she said, her voice cracking. "So please take care of yourself. I'm begging you. Please stay healthy. If you need anything, send us a letter and we'll have a servant ready for you."

 _I don't want a servant_ , she thought, nuzzling into the crook of her sister's neck. _I want you. I want Mom and Dad._

Her thoughts remained unvoiced, and she only nodded her head. As the sisters embraced, their parents began preparations to depart, loading their belongings onto their carriage. Eventually, her sister, the person who had remained by her side for her entire life, had to leave her. With a kiss on the forehead, she separated from Ruby. They shared a look, and with a wave, Dia exited the house, closing the door behind her.

Ruby remained frozen in place, waiting as the sounds of the carriage departing reached her ears. She waited until she could no longer hear them, and then everything hit her at once.

She was alone.

She looked around the house she lived in. Her parents had told her that it's smaller compared to their castle, but even the humble house felt too big for her.

She was alone.

Tears stung in her eyes as she stumbled towards her parents' room. Nothing there, other than their beds completely stripped of their personal belongings.

She was alone.

Her sister's room was in a similar state, but she as she checked the drawers she realized that Dia had forgotten two things. Two framed pictures.

One is of her mother, father, and Dia, posing in front of the castle. The second one has her in it, but rather than the castle, the picture was taken in front of their current house. As she stared at them, she felt like she had destroyed the family. That they would've been better off without her. And now, she had to pay for her sins. Her family had left her.

She was alone.

She tossed the two pictures onto Dia's bed as she exited her room, wanting to forget about their existence. The house was silent, without even the sounds of nature breaking it. She returned to her room and buried her face in a pillow before the first sob wracked her body.

She was alone.

 _She was truly alone_.

The cursed mark had finally taken everything from her.

Her final chance at a happy life felt like a fading dream.


End file.
